It made national headlines when the explosive allegation emerged that Deputy Prime Minister Gaspar Vega somehow had a hand in the murder of Ramon Cervantes Sr., father of PUP Standard Bearer Ramon Monchie Cervantes. Vega categorically denied that claim, and now, he's suing Monchie Cervantes for libel in the Supreme Court.
Viewers may remember that the Cervantes's family released a phone call from a man claiming to be wanted murder mastermind Manuel Castillo. In that phone call, he accused DPM Vega of organizing a political assassination which ended with Ramon Cervantes Sr. being brutally killed. That phone call, in Spanish, was played on Love FM during a live broadcast of the family's memorial ceremony for the patriarch.
Vega immediately released a statement, denied the allegation, and demanded that Monchie Cervantes retract all comments made. He didn't do that and so, Vega instructed his attorney, Rodwell Williams, to commence a libel suit, which had its first hearing today before Chief Justice Kenneth Benjamin.
It was only a case management conference, which meant that the media could not sit in, but we spoke with Certantes and his attorney, who showed up for court today. Here's what they told us about the first day:
Ramon "Monchie" Cervantes Jr. - Being Sued By Gaspar Vega
"It's just the beginning iof the judicial process. We are disputing the case and we are just waiting to see how the law takes its course."
Daniel Ortiz
"What happened today in the Case Management Forum sir?"
Rt. Hon. Said Musa - Attorney for Ramon Cervantes Jr.
"I can answer that. The court made what they called Case Management Orders for disclosure by all the parties and for witness statements to be filed on both sides, actually on three sides, because there is a third party involved as well - a radio station. A pre-trial review will be held down the road sometime in April I believe."
Daniel Ortiz
"For those of us who have no understanding of what a liable is and how it works, how does one defend against this to make a legitimate case - you know what, I said something and you may think its disparaging, but it's actually not."
Rt. Hon. Said Musa - Attorney for Ramon Cervantes Jr.
"Well, that's certainly one ground of defense to say that what was said or what was alleged to have been said is not libelous, not defamatory. A second ground could be that what was said is true - that is a full defense and then there are several other defenses, such as what is called qualified privileges and absolute privilege. So, there are several defenses to liable. There is also the fact that, is it liable or is it slander? Which is another issue as well."
We'll keep following the case.
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